The Cardinal Master
by Lytherin Dragonsong
Summary: There's a Yordle and he fights five Champions from my dream team because I was bored and can't think of plot very well. Should probably be T but I'ma note it as M maybe for language. I dunno, I'm paranoid. Hope you like it if you read it.
1. Chapter One

Caitlyn was _not_ happy. It was one thing to wake up early for work. It was another to be woken up by a call in the middle of the night detailing a murder that was going to take place. Caitlyn could still remember it vividly.

 _Caitlyn shot up in bed, hearing her Hextech Comms device buzz. She answered the call, prepared to unleash a torrent of colorful remarks on the caller's choice of timing when they spoke into the communications device. Their voice chilled her to her bones._

' _Today, at exactly 1:47 pm, I'm going to kill someone right in front of Piltover's Academy. I will snap their neck and stab their heart and I will leave and nobody will notice me. Stop me if you can. If you can't, we'll be seeing each other more often.' and then they hung up. Caitlyn was beyond awake at this point, rushing to get ready and head for Vi's house to wake her up._

They got to the town square by noon and stayed there. Vi was on ground duty and Caitlyn was up on the rooftops scanning the streets through the scope on her gun. The two had set up a ground and air perimeter as well as put more precautions into place than were probably necessary, but Caitlyn knew something was wrong. The man's voice. It was cold, devoid of life, of anything. He wasn't killing out of bloodlust or boredom. It wasn't fun and he didn't want to be caught. He wanted to test her, and she'd be damned before she let him murder someone over something so trivial.

They waited. Caitlyn was counting the seconds in her mind. By the time they had prepared and gotten into position, it was already 1:46:53. It was going to happen. 54. It was coming. 55. 56. 57. Here it was. She trained her eyes on the streets. 58. 59. A scream. An ear-splitting, bloodcurdling scream. Caitlyn saw a woman with groceries spilled on the floor. Her head was turned at a 180 degree angle and there was a knife in her chest. She crumpled to the floor. Caitlyn shouted over her comms device, and Vi rushed to the scene. Caitlyn whipped back and forth, desperately scanning the crowds. Nothing. There was absolutely nothing. How was it possible? Caitlyn checked the time. 1:47:05. Within the span of five seconds, someone murdered this woman gruesomely and got away when Caitlyn and Vi knew exactly what was going to happen ahead of time. It wasn't possible.

"Cupcake?! What the hell was that!?" Vi shouted.

"I don't know!" Caitlyn shouted back. "I was watching the whole time! It was like she just… died."

"People don't just die, Cupcake. You must've seen something!" Vi responded.

"That's just it. I didn't. I must've been damn near burning a hole in the street by how hard I was looking. There's nothing, no one."

Vi sighed in exasperation. "How did they do that?"

"I wish I knew, Vi…." Caitlyn slumped to the roof of the building she was stationed on. "I wish I knew…."

Later that day, Caitlyn and Vi fell into chairs at their office in a huff.

"You informed the family, Vi?"

"Yeah. Sister was devastated, brother asked who did it, and her husband just sat there staring at the floor."

Caitlyn sighed, rubbing her temples with her fingers. "Damn it."

A knock at the door.

The two looked over, and Vi grabbed her gauntlets. They were both on edge today, and even despite that, there had been plenty of people trying to take them out from the source.

The two officers approached the door, opening it slightly.

"The look on your face tells me he got you, too."

Caitlyn opened the door fully with a breath of relief. "High Councillor Kolminye. May I ask the purpose of your visit?"

"I think you know. I've sent couriers to the rest, but the one I sent to you came back lost. Twice. I've requested your immediate presence at the Institute of War. Pack your things, you'll be out of office for a while. I'll meet you at the train station." And, with that, she walked away.

Caitlyn and Vi knew they were being summoned by the Institute. But this wasn't any normal summons. The fact that the High Councillor herself showed up meant trouble enough. They looked at each other, worry apparent in both of their faces.

* * *

"Ah, Piltover's Enforcer and Sheriff. I'm glad to see you're both here." the Summoner spoke with a deep voice, full of respect. "Right this way if you please. The High Councillor will be in shortly. Oh, and the chair is for you, Sheriff Caitlyn."

Caitlyn looked around and her eyes bulged. She entered a room shaped like a circle with a massive table. She moved to the open spot, sitting in a chair with Vi standing behind her protectively. On the opposite side of the table, Kennen was standing on his chair with Shen and Akali standing behind him. On her right, Volibear sat on the floor with Sejuani behind him, patting Bristle. Karma was also sitting at the table to Caitlyn's left with Irelia standing over her shoulder. Lastly, between Kennen and Volibear, Quinn sat with Garen and Poppy behind her, Poppy standing on her leaning hammer to give her some added height.

"What is the meaning of this?" Sejuani barked as Caitlyn sat. "We've got Piltovans now, too?"

"Be patient, Winter's Wrath." the deep-voiced Summoner spoke again. "She is ready." He turned, opening the door for High Councillor Kolminye. Recognizing the woman holding such a powerful position, Sejuani promptly stopped talking.

"I have brought you all here for a reason." the High Councillor said with a seriousness about her that left the entire room latching onto her every word. "One hundred and seventeen days ago, someone left a note written in blood on the wall of my room at my house. How they managed it, I still do not know. However, the note was clear. It foretold that, today, the writer would make contact with five Champions from the League of Legends on territory you know to be your own and make you rethink that knowledge. Caitlyn and Vi were to be told of a murder in advance only to fail at catching the murderer."

Caitlyn clenched her jaw. She noticed Vi behind her closing her fists.

"Kennen, Shen, and Akali were to be infiltrated at their headquarters only to lose an important scroll and still be unable to even see the infiltrator."

Caitlyn looked towards the Triumvirate, but they didn't show any expression. Kennen, however, seemed the slightest bit guilty.

"Volibear and Sejuani were to be outmatched in strength without managing to land a single blow on their opponent."

Volibear showed no emotion, but Sejuani's eyes burned.

"Karma and Irelia were to fail to protect many Ionian citizens not but a few feet away."

Karma lowered her head and Irelia closed her eyes.

"Lastly, a target was to be discovered by Poppy, passing the information to Garen, who set Quinn and Valor to track them. Unfortunately, their target stayed at least two steps ahead of them at all times, ultimately killing ten innocent citizens and escaping."

Quinn's eyes hardened and Valor shuffled a bit on Quinn's shoulder. Poppy stiffened behind them and Garen opened his mouth, eyes accusing. "High Councillor, if I may, these people, while proven fighters of the League, are not privy to Demacia's goings-on."

The High Councillor closed her eyes and sighed heavily. "True. These political matters are typically kept quiet. Unfortunately, in this case, something connects these tragedies in a most unpleasant way." She opened her eyes, staring at each Champion in turn. "The murderer Caitlyn and Vi failed to catch, the fighter who took out Volibear and Sejuani, the scroll thief who escaped the Triumvirate, the one who caused the Ionian massacre, and the target Quinn and Valor failed to track are all the same person."

Silence.

"You…" Quinn was the first to break the silence. "You can't be serious. He was unseen. Completely under wraps for weeks. I was tracking him for almost 49 hours straight at one point and he _still_ kept ahead of me as though he knew when I did and didn't sleep. Someone able to keep such a low profile can't possibly be strong enough to take out these two!" she exclaimed, gesturing to the two Freljordians.

"You don't understand, Wings of Demacia." Sejuani muttered.

"No, I don't think you understand, Sejuani." Quinn rose her voice slightly, standing up.

"And who the hell gave you the right to say my name?! Show some respect!"

"Respect? That's rich coming from-"

"Finish that sentence and I'll have you-"

"ENOUGH!" The High Councillor shouted.

Silence.

"Caitlyn, Volibear, Quinn, Karma, and Kennen. This target was testing you all. It seems you five are the marks. I brought your allies along to keep some semblance of peace, however I am now questioning that decision. In reality, however, you five are the only ones he will show himself to. We know this figure to be exceedingly fast, extremely powerful, very smart, and absolutely merciless. He managed to evade every swing of Irelia's swords, withstand all of Karma's spiritual attacks, and murder nineteen innocents in Ionia all at the same time. He managed to upend Sejuani and bristle with one hand and send Volibear flying with a palm strike from the other. He ran down the streets of Piltover, twisted a woman's head backwards, stabbed her in the heart, and escaped within five seconds. He managed to hide under Demacia's Wings watchful eyes for weeks while murdering ten innocents and giving nothing away to his identity. He was able to infiltrate, steal from, and escape Ionia's very own Triumvirate in their own dwellings. And here's where it turns south. We went over some trackers and sensors in the areas during these happenings. No magic was used during any of these events aside from your own."

Caitlyn froze. She glanced over the others and, although they were quick to recover, only the Triumvirate were not shocked.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me." Quinn said, pacing and running her fingers through her hair in exasperation.

"I wish I was, Quinn." the High Councillor said softly.

"He was playing with you all, but he's also providing us a chance to stop him. It's up to you. Now, I'm taking the five of you off match lists for a while. I want this man caught. Unfortunately, I cannot help you. He's already proven to me that he will know if I do so and, when I do, it will all be over. I wish you five luck. Now then, Shen, Akali, Sejuani, Irelia, Poppy, Garen, and Vi. If you would please follow me out, we all have important business to get to, I'm sure. I'd like the five of you to stay and figure out how to stop him."

Caitlyn looked up to see Shen and Akali gone. Everyone else was following the High Councillor out. Behind her, Vi placed one of her massive gauntlets on Caitlyn's shoulder. "Take it easy, cupcake. It'll work out."

Caitlyn nodded appreciatively, but she wasn't so sure…. When everyone else was out, Karma spoke up. "I'm sorry for your losses. It can't have been easy. But that's why we _must_ stop him. Especially if he's chosen us."

"Well, I _have_ chosen you, so I suppose you _must_ stop me." Caitlyn couldn't even blink fast enough to process what happened. There appeared to be no time whatsoever between when he wasn't there and when there was suddenly a small Yordle standing on the circular table they were all sitting around. He looked to be about 3'6" in height with custard colored fur. He had bright blue eyes and wore a necklace with a dragon on it. He had a burnt orange shirt with black pants and black shoes.

Milliseconds later, Kennen was there and the other Yordle was a step back. "You're fast, Kennen. I would know. But you're not fast enough." Kennen merely glared at the other Yordle, watching him. He seemed to know they couldn't catch him. Caitlyn looked around, noticing the same thought in the others' eyes. By that time, Volibear was on his feet, Karma was holding an odd stance, Quinn was already equipped with her crossbow, and Valor's wings were spread threateningly. Caitlyn noticed even she herself had habitually reached for her rifle.

"What do you want?" Volibear growled.

The Yordle smiled brightly. "Ah, the bear talks. Ooh! Ooh! Can you do a little bear dance for me?" The Yordle clapped gleefully, hopping from one foot to the other.

Volibear snarled. "I will do nothing of the sort. Now tell us what you want from us."

"Bah, you're no fun. I want you all because you're my connections. See, the Institute of War is all about war, yet they don't ever really go to war. I wanna change that.."

"Explain yourself." Quinn demanded. Valor squawked.

"Well, that'll be a story. Feel free to try to kill me while I tell it." He looked around. Nobody moved. "Any takers? No? Okay then. Obviously, I'm a Yordle. I was born in Bandle City and then my parents moved to Ionia to seek a peaceful life. I was bored out of my mind there, so they introduced me to a wise woman named Karma. She was the one to try to calm down my spirit or some jazz, but she failed, which was a first for her."

Caitlyn and the others looked over, noticing Karma's face was pale and stricken. "No…."

"Yeah, that's me by the way. Anyways, she did find something in me that worried her. A power. The power of the Cardinal Spirits, to be exact. I have the speed of the Southern Crane. I also have the strength of the Western Ox. I have the wisdom of the Eastern Dragon, and I have the passion of the Northern Tiger. And, with these powers come elements. The Crane's fire, the Ox's stone, the Dragon's wind, and the Tiger's ice."

As he said each, a part of his body merged with the element. His right arm turned into fire, his left arm turned into wind, his right leg turned into stone, and his left leg turned into ice.

Suddenly, he was normal again. "And that is when Lady Karma suggested I be taken to the Freljord to be seen by an oracle Ursine who knew much more than she did on the Cardinal Spirits' power. That Ursine's name was Kaaga."

Now, it was Volibear's turn to flinch.

"Oh, my bear does remember. How wonderful. I was taken to this oracle, who explained that most people have a 12% affinity to one spirit tops. I had a 100% affinity with all four, meaning I had access to a fifth element. Lightning. Honestly, Kennen, when I said you were fast, I wasn't kidding. My Crane speed or lightning alone could probably stand a slight chance against you, but that's debatable. But I have both. Sorry. Anyways, this oracle attempted to take my power since I was a very small child and wouldn't know how to handle it. When I involuntarily lashed out, the oracle's good defender Volibear clawed the tip of my right ear off when I had no control over my actions." the Yordle glared at Volibear, who averted his gaze. The Yordle scoffed. "So they decided to call over Kennen. The two of them might've been able to train me in lightning, which was primarily the cause for my instability and lack of control."

Kennen didn't do much, but Caitlyn's sharp eye caught a slight widening of his eyes.

"Oh, so you remember, too? Goodie." The Yordle smirked. He must've had a sharp eye to see Kennen's reaction. Caitlyn had years of training and she barely caught it. "These two trained me for a year. Eventually, they gave up and left me to fend for myself. I made my way wherever I could, where I landed in Piltover. I was a small orphan with nowhere to go. I assume that's why I was target for a kidnapping by a criminal caught by our very own Sheriff of Piltover."

Caitlyn suddenly remembered.

"Yep. Once again, me. Caitlyn caught the criminal, but I had tape over my mouth and she didn't come looking for me. I was there for a day and a half before I finally cut the ropes around my arms and tore the tape off. By that time, I was discovered by a Noxian soldier who retired and moved to Piltover. She took me in as one of her own. Told me jokes, got me food, took me to see movies and to the park, just as a normal kid should. But when word of a Noxian spy in Piltover got out, Demacia's Wings came to solve the problem."

Quinn sighed. She seemed to know where this was going. Even Valor lowered his head.

"One thing went wrong. They got the wrong one. Analise had just enough time to cast a silencing spell on me and lock me in a footlocker before Quinn and Valor broke down the door and slaughtered her in the name of the law when she merely tried to explain herself. So, now that the five of you have led my life to nothing but misery, I think you'll play a game with me now. Here are the rules. The five, errr, six of you must stay together at all times. If any of you split up, you all lose. If any of you tell anybody else what's happening, you lose. If you ask for help, you lose."

"Why would we agree to this game of yours?" Volibear snarled.

"Well, if you lose or decline my game, you die." the Yordle smiled brightly.

"You can't kill us that easily." Quinn defended.

"Oh, but I can. See, you all have Soul Marks courtesy of yours truly."

Karma looked up sharply. "You can't!"

"Too late, hun. Already did. Now then, I'll leave your first clue. Oh, and before you think you can trick me, I'm always watching." His eyes glowed with dark intent and he was gone. Where he was standing were carvings in the wooden table.

"First, what are Soul Marks, Karma?" Quinn asked.

"They are, in simple terms, tethers on your soul that can be cut at any time by the one who marked you." Karma spoke. "At any time he feels, he can cut our lifelines, killing us instantaneously. The spell takes millennia to master. The only ones who know how to use it are probably Aurelion Sol, Syndra, or Jax."

"Wait, Jax?"

"You'd be surprised how powerful he is." Kennen spoke for the first time.

"How do we get rid of the Soul Marks?" Volibear asked.

"We can't. Unless he removes the spell or dies, we're in trouble." Karma muttered gravely.

"Lovely. Alright then, let's play this stupid game. Can anybody read the markings?" Quinn asked, looking around.

"I've only seen markings like these once." Karma said as she studied them. "Aurelion Sol dug markings similar to these in some dirt with his claw once before erasing it and flying off. Maybe he knows?"

"But we can't ask for help." Caitlyn said.

"True, but he never said we can't ask people questions." Kennen said.

"Loopholes are beneficial that way." Quinn chuckled. "Let's go."

Volibear took a massive paw and slammed it into the table's center, punching out the section with the markings.

Valor nestled on Quinn's shoulder and the six made their way out of the conference room and down toward the main lobby of the Institute of War. They approached the front desk, where some high ranking Summoners were helping a number of people. As the group of five Champions approached, however, they quickly moved their attention to them. "Uhm, yes, can we help you?" one asked.

"We need access to Aurelion Sol's living quarters here at the Institute. It's a matter of life and death on a massive scale." Volibear urged gruffly.

The Summoner's eyes widened before he quickly grabbed a key and handed it to Quinn. They thanked the Summoners, turned on their heels, and ran. They made their way up the stairs a number of floors before they reached a floor with one door. This door led to all of the dorms. The key unlocked the door and it opened to Aurelion Sol's door. They stepped inside, quickly losing the ability to stand. They floated in what seemed like space.

"Aurelion Sol! If you can hear us, we need you! It's a matter of urgency!" Quinn shouted.

Suddenly, Aurelion Sol's massive form materialized in front of them. "What do you mortals want?"

Kennen's eyes narrowed. "We need you to translate this."

Volibear promptly held up the broken piece of table to Aurelion Sol, who shrunk to their size, peering closer. "Where did you get anything written in Dragontongue?"

"Dragontongue?" Caitlyn asked.

"It's the language of dragons, but… we rarely write it. In Draconic culture, if you write Dragontongue, you must destroy it afterwards. If you don't, you are cursed to never speak again."

"But a Yordle carved this." Karma said.

"Impossible." Aurelion Sol scoffed. "No mortal can comprehend Dragontongue, let alone understand it enough to write this."

"What does it say?" Kennen pressed.

"It says 'From fire to stone to ice to wind to lightning, I breathe fluidly. Chaos will bend to my will. Learn my name or perish.'" Aurelion Sol spoke.

"Learn his name?!" Volibear shouted. "We're nothing better than his playthings at this point!"

"There's not much we can do, though." Kennen said.

"Wait…" Aurelion Sol spoke softly. "Get rid of it!" he shouted.

"What?" Karma asked.

"NOW!" the dragon reached out a paw and grabbed the table piece. With his other paw, he created a black hole and dropped the table piece into it before sealing the void. Then, the whole of space that they seemed to be in shook as if hit by an earthquake.

When it stopped, Aurelion Sol glared at the other five. "I don't know who wrote that, but they're powerful. Maybe as powerful as Syndra or myself. Whatever you're getting yourself into, prepare yourselves well. This Yordle appears to know more about magic than I do, and I was there since the first breath of creation."

The gravity of the situation hit them like a sack of bricks. Aurelion Sol actually seemed to be afraid.

"Leave me." he dismissed them with a wave of his paw, teleporting them back to the main lobby of the Institute.

"Now what?" Volibear asked.

"Now that." Caitlyn pointed behind the other four.

On the wall of the main lobby, in large letters made of fire, said "Bandle City. It's where I grew up after all."

"This is going to be a _long_ day, isn't it?" Caitlyn asked.

 **So, I hope you liked Chapter One. A few notes. First, if anyone's wondering, I kind of took the idea of the August Celestials from World of Warcraft for the Cardinal Spirits. So... yeah. Another note: I absolutely SUCK at updating stories. Chances are I won't drop this one forever, but it's very possible updates could be anywhere from a day in between two chapters to a year between two chapters. I have no idea. So if you want a regularly updated story, I recommend not getting too attached to this one. Last but not least, yes, the weird mystery Yordle seems really really OP as Aurelion Sol is scared of him, but I have plans. All I can say is trust me, he's not going to be able to just win every fight. Well, he is, but that'll change. So if that's the only reason you dislike it, feel free to stick around. Or not. I'm not really good at this whole selling the story thing. Anyways, if you liked it, awesome, if not, oh well. Can't please everyone. But I do hope you like it. Back I go to cry over not being able to marry Rytlock Brimstone.**


	2. Chapter Two

"Are you sure we should be doing this?"

"If you think we shouldn't be, Quinn, you're insane. The Star Forger himself seemed afraid of that stupid Yordle."

"I'm aware of that!" Quinn snapped. "But isn't that exactly why we _shouldn't_ do it?! Gods, I thought Freljordians were brave, not stupid."

"If there was any other way, I'm sure the High Councillor would've figured it out. Now please, stop fighting." Karma interjected before Volibear could retort.

"Who are you to talk?" Quinn turned on Karma. "You were the one who knew of his power!"

"And so did Volibear and Kennen. Just because we knew he had it doesn't mean we had it in our power to do something."

"You could've solved the problem before it started!"

"Are you suggesting we should have killed an innocent child?" Karma seemed almost offended.

"Maybe, if it was necessary!"

"I thought _Demacians_ were honorable." Volibear scoffed.

"Are you _trying_ to pick a fight with me?" Quinn asked threateningly.

"All of you, stop it!" Kennen cut in.

"I don't need defending from a Yordle!" Volibear griped.

"So what if I'm a Yordle? I've proven myself on the Rift with the rest of you!" Kennen glared.

"So we're being threatened by a Yordle, that's what." Volibear replied dryly.

"Are you insinuating he's with the cardinal power guy?" Quinn asked, eyeing Kennen oddly.

"Nobody's insinuating anything. Stop jumping to conclusions!"

"Shut up, Karma! What do you know about him? He's a Yordle and they both grew up in the same city-state."

Kennen looked passive, but there was a hint of incredulity in his expression. "I was there for my early childhood, yes, but most of that I don't even remember."

"So what's Bandle like? You've gotta know why he wants us there. Is there something important we should know about?"

"Oh, yeah, it's _real_ thick with thieves, muggers, and murderers, Quinn. Zaunites and Noxians are afraid to enter the cursed land of short stacks." Volibear grumbled sarcastically.

"Ha ha, real funny." Quinn said, rolling her eyes.

"Short stack? I've faced you on the Rift. You know I'm just as strong as the rest of you." Kennen glared.

"Oh, please, if I kicked you, not even Caitlyn would be able to see where you landed." Volibear chuckled.

"You assume that you can land a kick on me."

Volibear's chuckling stopped short. "Are you doubting my strength?"

"Of course not. I'm doubting your ability to land a blow on me in the first place." Kennen smirked.

"Overconfident, sniveling-"

"Hey! Quit it! You're acting like children!" Karma scolded.

"I'm sorry, _Enlightened One_ , should we meditate our problems away?" Volibear snapped gruffly.

"Could you be any less of an ass?" Quinn asked, snarling.

"Oh please. At least I don't need a silly bird to fight."

"Valor is an Azurite Eagle, not some silly bird!" Valor squawked.

"Azurite Eagle, silly bird, still an easy dinner." Volibear sneered.

"That's it!"

"ENOUGH!" Caitlyn shouted and checked her watch. "It has _literally_ been seven minutes since we left the outskirts of the Institute and you're already bickering like there's no tomorrow. Now I would normally suggest we all part ways and have ourselves a spot of tea to calm down, but something tells me none of you want to _die_!" The other four looked to the ground, still walking. "Now I suggest we start getting along. It's still a three hour trek to Bandle City and even then, we need Kennen to get in, so if you could please avoid trying to maim each other, that would make the enemy's job a lot harder and our job a lot easier. If nothing else, focus on our mission, not each other and your petty differences."

"Fine." Quinn said, coldly glaring ahead. Kennen and Karma said nothing, while Volibear merely growled lowly and kept shambling along with the rest of them.

"Thank you." Caitlyn was once again cheery, taking up the rear while they walked down the road leading to the nearest train station. Once there, they received their passes for the soonest train for Bandle and turned around, seeing only one bench. Caitlyn sighed.

' _Definitely a long day.'_ she thought to herself.

* * *

"Finally." Caitlyn heaved a long sigh, listening to Quinn and Volibear go back and forth making snarky remarks to one another. Luckily, Kennen and Karma seemed to understand the importance of getting along and had stopped arguing. Unfortunately, the other two were rather… stubborn.

Upon Caitlyn's comment, they fell short, looking around.

"Oh. We're… where are we?" Volibear asked.

"Volibear, Quinn, Karma, and Caitlyn. Welcome to Bandle City." Kennen said. Caitlyn could practically hear the smile in his voice.

' _I suppose no matter how long you stay away from home, it's still home.'_ she thought.

Kennen seemed almost giddy as he walked up to the sign, leaning against it with his arm.

Caitlyn blinked. Ahead of her, she could see the rolling hills of Bandle City. It was so charming and peaceful. But…

"It's small." Quinn said, her expression mirroring Caitlyn's thoughts.

"Maybe so, but for Yordles, it's perfect. Everything's just the right size. Just… please don't run into the buildings. You especially, Volibear."

Volibear huffed, frowning, but didn't object. The buildings were about as big as the three girls. Volibear, however, stood a good foot and a half above the majority of them.

As they walked through the city, a lot of Yordles recognized them and made way for the five Champions as they passed marketplaces, residential areas, and farms until they reached the mayor's office. Kennen knocked on the door. After a short while, a cheery looking Yordle opened the door and jumped slightly at the sight of five Champions at his door. "Oh my, you gave me somewhat of a fright. What brings you all to Bandle City? Are these new friends of yours, Kennen?"

"If you'd please, mayor, we're looking for someone. He was just a child when his parents took him to Ionia to help with a condition he had."

"Kennen, my boy, you ask a lot. I don't have quite the memory I used to. You said he went to Ionia? It might be that young boy Kitt. Unfortunately, I don't remember his real name, but all the young Yordles called him Kitt."

"And you're sure you can't remember his name?" Quinn asked.

"Well, I'm quite sorry, but I can't say that I remember." the Yordle mayor said, apologizing.

"Odd question here, but did he or his family ever visit Mount Targon?" Caitlyn asked.

"I don't remember much, but… well, no, I do remember something like that. His family often took trips to Mount Targon every Snowdown because young Kitt always wanted to see the stars. Quite an odd time to climb a mountain if you ask me."

"Thank you very much, mayor." Kennen said, bowing.

"Oh, no need for such formality."

"We must be going now, but you've helped a great deal. You have our gratitude, mayor."

"Well of course, Kennen. Do be sure to visit more!"

"Will do. Take care of yourself!" Kennen said as the five Champions made their way back to the outskirts of the city.

"How'd you know to ask that, Caitlyn?" Quinn asked.

"If you remember, he knew Dragontongue and many dragons in Runeterra are very hostile. So I thought the only place that might be as ancient as to remember Dragontongue from when dragons weren't so hostile. It had to be Mount Targon." Caitlyn replied.

"Well at least I know you're not the Sheriff of Piltover for nothing." Quinn said, a hint of admiration in her eyes.

"Well now I suppose it's time to head to Mount Targon." Karma cut in once they reached the town's border.

"How was it being back, Kennen?" Volibear asked.

Kennen, who had been gazing back at his birthplace, looked up in surprise. "I- well…." he looked down in thought for a moment before meeting the Ursine's eyes. "It's been nice, thank you."

The two looked at each other for a while, a sort of communication passing between them before Volibear nodded. "Right then. What's the quickest route to Mount Targon?"

"That would probably be the Mount Targon portals back at the Institute. Unfortunately, those are locked from access, although I suppose the High Councillor might let us in as she knows the situation."

"But we can't ask for help…. Earlier we managed a loophole, but this is cutting it close." Karma pointed out.

"Well, Valor and I can scout ahead and…." Quinn said, before faltering. "Never mind, we can't stray from each other."

"He was thorough with his rules, that's for damn sure." Volibear huffed. "I guess we walk."

* * *

"Alright, we should make camp here tonight." Quinn said, surveying the land. "It's a nice alcove where we can sleep. Valor and I'll take first watch."

"Wait, but Mount Targon's so close! I can see it there!" Volibear grumbled, pointing to the mountain that seemed to be close enough to touch.

"Listen, if we keep going, we run the risk of encountering things in the night that are much more capable of seeing in the dark than us. We also run into the problem of climbing a freakin' mountain in the dead of night. The moon isn't that bright and I don't know about you, but I'd rather hike in the daylight where I can see the loose rocks where I might break off and fall fifty feet." Quinn said.

Volibear opened his muzzle to argue again, but shut it soon after, sighing in defeat. "I suppose you're right." With that, he flopped onto the ground and rolled over, facing away from everyone else.

Karma sat down, looking as though she were about to meditate. Quinn and Valor found a nearby boulder and hopped up on top of it. Quinn pulled out her crossbow and sat down, watching the forest around them. Kennen looked up to Caitlyn once she finished observing her surroundings. "If you can get some firewood nearby, I can create a spark for a fire."

Caitlyn nodded and ventured off nearby, making sure to stay within eyesight of the others at all times. She picked up some firewood and noticed Kennen finding some rocks for the fire ring. When she decided she found a decent amount, she made her way back and found Karma laying down now. Quinn and Valor were still keeping watch and Volibear had turned over again, facing the fire ring, eyes closed. Caitlyn set up the firewood properly and nodded to Kennen. Once she was out of the way, Kennen's blue eyes flashed with a spark and lightning shot out of his hands, sparking the firewood. Within moments, smoke was curling up towards the sky.

Kennen nodded towards Caitlyn and sat down, meditating much like Karma was. Caitlyn decided to keep Quinn and Valor company. She struggled a bit getting up onto the boulder, realizing how strong Quinn's legs were, but made it nonetheless. Quinn turned back to see who joined her and gave a perfunctory smile, which Caitlyn returned. "Hello. Thought I'd keep you two company."

Valor squawked. "It's alright, you don't have to." Quinn replied, absentmindedly reaching up to lightly scratch Valor's head.

"I wouldn't be able to sleep anyways. Not with all this noise." Caitlyn said, gesturing to the forest.

Quinn couldn't stifle her chuckle. "Noise? You live in Piltover."

Caitlyn, realizing how it sounded, laughed with the Demacian scout. "Noise cancelling earmuffs."

Quinn nodded, still smiling. "Makes sense."

"So how's being a scout for Demacia? I'm sure it's quite difficult." Caitlyn spoke with genuine interest.

"Meh, it's not as bad as it seems. I suppose the other scouts have their work cut out for them, though, seeing as they don't have anyone to keep them company. If they die in the field, nobody knows, whereas Valor and I are able to watch each other's backs." Quinn said, looking fondly towards her avian companion.

"I suppose I can relate in a way. I wouldn't trade my partner if it meant every criminal turned themselves in." Caitlyn responded, thinking back on Vi.

"Miss her?" Quinn asked after a while, startling the sheriff.

"I suppose I do. I've been undercover for months on end, I've traveled as hired help to other city-states and stayed there for long periods of time, but somehow, despite only a day passing, it feels as though we've been tracking this Kitt for ages." Caitlyn mused.

"Yeah, I get ya. Although it _is_ a bit odd. I've never felt like this before. If anything, sometimes, when I return, it feels as though I've been gone for no time at all."

Caitlyn frowned, about to speak when Karma stood up suddenly. "We need to move. Now." she said.

"What?" Quinn asked, looking over. Volibear and Kennen were stirring as well. "Why? I'm keeping watch, nothing's gonna catch us off-guard."

"It's not danger I'm worried about. It's time." Karma said.

"Whaddaya mean?" Volibear grumbled sleepily.

"It feels as though a day has passed, right? We woke up, encountered this individual, went to High Councillor Kolminye, asked Aurelion Sol, visited Bandle City, and started our trip to Mount Targon."

The others nodded, confusion apparent in their faces. "We all remember, Enlightened One." Caitlyn responded with her title trying to calm her down.

"But that's just it. What did you do _yesterday_ , Caitlyn?"

"Well, that's easy. I…. I…. I don't remember." Caitlyn said, frowning in thought.

"That's because none of us do." Karma said, staring at each of them in turn.

"I can't remember anything the past few days. I don't get it. Did he wipe our memories?" Kennen asked.

"No. Think. What day was it when we encountered this individual?" Karma asked.

"The nineteenth." Kennen and Quinn responded simultaneously as Caitlyn said "The nineteenth of July.

"Look at the sky." Karma said.

Looking up, they all saw the stars blanketing the night sky. "Get to the point, Karma." Volibear huffed impatiently.

"Look at the constellation. The Drawing Brush, right there." Karma pointed. "The Drawing Brush is a constellation named after its appearance of a paintbrush being drawn across the sky. It only appears once every five years on the seventh of October. It was scheduled again for this year, which isn't the problem. The problem is-"

"80 days have passed in the time we felt like one had." Caitlyn responded, eyes wide.

"How did I miss it?" Kennen asked himself, looking side to side at seemingly nothing. "When we were in Bandle City, they were preparing decorations that looked an awful like those of the first days of sugarbeet harvesting. That starts September first!"

"What's happening?" Quinn asked.

"I think Kitt is changing time around us."

"Not even Zilean or Aurelion Sol are completely capable of that kind of magic on so grand a scale!" Volibear exclaimed.

"Exactly. We need to hurry before things get worse." Karma said.

Immediately, Volibear picked up a nearby boulder and crushed the fire, effectively killing it. "Let's go. I refuse to be a part of his sick game any longer."

The five made their way through the forest path at a brisk pace, making it to the mountain base by sunrise. They started hiking up, helping each other along the way. Finally, Volibear picked Kennen up and put him on his broad shoulder. "What are you doing?" Kennen asked, being lifted into the air.

"Your legs are short; you move slow." Volibear replied frankly. "We're almost there. I'll put you down when we're close."

* * *

"Fine. This is close enough." Volibear said, leaning down so Kennen could jump off his shoulder to the ground. "We're near the village."

As they approached the village, Caitlyn noticed Pantheon and Leona talking to each other. "Pantheon! Leona!" she shouted. The two jumped, looking towards the five. They looked between each other once more and rushed towards them.

"Where have you all been? High Councillor Kolminye told us you were all taking a leave for matters of world safety, but you've been gone since July!" Leona said, looking between them in worry.

"What day is it?" Volibear asked.

"December 3rd, why?"

"It's been another 57 days. This is ridiculous." Caitlyn muttered.

"Quick, we need to know something. You two have been here many years. A long time ago, a Yordle family from Bandle City visited Mount Targon every winter so the child could see the stars. Everyone called him Kitt, but we need his name." Quinn said.

"We have records of those who attend the Starlight Festival during Snowdown, but we only ask for their first and last names." Pantheon said, motioning for Leona to retrieve the records.

"Damn it." Quinn said. "How are we supposed to find out his middle name?"

"Calm yourself, Quinn. We'll figure it out." Karma said.

Leona returned soon after with the records. Caitlyn took them, thanked Leona, and started scanning the pages as fast as she could. "Here." The others looked towards her with hope. "His name is Sære Veren."

"But we still need his middle name!" Volibear cried. "At this rate, we're out of luck!"

"Wait…." Kennen said, frowning in thought. "What do we do when we have his name?" The others looked amongst themselves before they looked to Kennen. "So we don't know that, either. Great."

"Why do you ask, Kennen?" Volibear asked.

"I think… I think I know his name. But if I'm right, we're going to be in some deep trouble." Kennen frowned.

"Well? What do you think it is?" Quinn pressed.

"Sære Kittra Veren." Kennen responded.

Clapping.

The seven Champions looked around them as they heard it. As they didn't see anyone, Pantheon and Leona vanished. "Pantheon! Leona!" Karma shouted.

"Where'd they go?" Kennen asked.

Suddenly the five found themselves in front of the Institute. Or, what was left of it. The landscape was the same, but the Institute was broken and burning. The walls were crumbling and the entire front area was littered with the bodies of Champions.

"This…. This is December 31st. Feel free to try to stop it." A voice spoke from behind them.

They whipped about, seeing the small Yordle again.

"You're…. You're Sære Kittra Veren." Kennen said. "The only history from Ancient Yordle times to survive was a prophecy of a small Yordle named Sære Kittra Veren, who would be the downfall of the world. The reason we Yordles can navigate Runeterra as we do is because of the magic in our blood. The same magic that was placed in order to stop you."

"Correct. Unfortunately, that magic was only ever the strongest in one Yordle. And I already have him. Now, as I said, you have until the last day of the year to save your precious Institute. If it goes down, the world falls. Good luck. You'll need it." Sære's body faded from view, his glowing blue eyes staying seconds longer before they, too, faded from view. All that was left was the destruction around them. So much destruction...

* * *

Caitlyn blinked and she found herself back in her bed. She tore the covers off and careened down the hall, checking the date. July nineteenth. Before the call, before the murder, before everything. _'It couldn't have been a dream. It was too realistic.'_ She got a call. Whipping her head towards the Hextech Comms device, she approached it slowly before quickly picking it up.

"Caitlyn? Please tell me you remember everything!" It was Quinn.

"It wasn't a dream then…." Caitlyn responded.

"I wish it was. I wish it was a dream more than anything." Quinn's voice was strong, but Caitlyn could hear the fear in it. She couldn't deny that same fear in herself. To be able to destroy the Institute and all the Champions and Summoners in it. It couldn't be possible. Could it?

"So what do we do?" Caitlyn asked.

"We…. We have to protect the Institute. We have to tell High Councillor Kolminye. I'll round up Volibear. You get Karma and Kennen. We'll meet in front of the Institute tomorrow."

"I'll see you then." Caitlyn responded, hanging up. Her legs, which were trembling the entire time, buckled, leaving her on the floor, leaning against the table with the Hextech Comms device on it. _'I really wish that was just a dream.'_

 **So that was Chapter Two. Hopefully it was good. Sorry for the wait. Five AP classes is fun. ;w; Also, I edited a bit of Chapter One as, when I originally posted it, it didn't have the description of our mystery Yordle (calling him that because I dunno if people skipped the Chapter and I don't wanna spoil it) so I added that and then I added a horizontal line for a page break during a timeskip in the story. Didn't know how to do that until I wrote this one and so I added it to the other one as well. So, ehhh, yeah. Hope this chapter is as good as the first one. Time to go do AP classes and then stay up all night starting Chapter Three.**


	3. Chapter Three

"They should be here by now." Kennen said. "Something could be wrong."

"I really hope not." Caitlyn muttered grimly. "At this point everything's already wrong. Wrong on top of wrong is..."

"Wrong?" Kennen said, a hint of concern for Caitlyn on his face. That's when she realized she was pacing back and forth. Then she saw how Kennen kept tossing a shuriken between his hands at lightning fast speeds, and even Karma, despite normally seeming fairly peaceful, was now kneading her thumb into her fist over and over again.

Caitlyn sighed. "We're a wreck, aren't we?"

"Who wouldn't be after that? Five of us shared a vision of the Institute falling and nobody else remembers it." Kennen griped.

"I even tried my best to chalk it up to someone trying to pull one over on us, but the only people capable of that kind of magic wouldn't be interested in silly, dangerous, and life-threatening pranks." Karma spoke with a half-exasperated, half-defeated sigh.

"Finally. They're here." Caitlyn said, catching the attention of the other two. She felt sympathy for the Enlightened One, but she was grateful Quinn, Valor, and Volibear showed up when they did. Sympathy does no good when consolation is an elusive prey to catch. As they looked toward the road, Kennen waved to Quinn and Volibear coming down the way with Valor flying overhead.

Karma stood up, coming together with the others under an awkward silence.

"So," Quinn spoke, feeling the thick tension. "What do we do?"

"We played his game. We figured out his name, yet that seemed only the beginning. Now we have to stop him and all we have is a description and a name." Volibear snarled.

"I assume the tethers on our souls are still there?" Caitlyn asked.

Karma nodded, being met with a grimace from Caitlyn.

"What if we wait?" Kennen asked.

The other four stared at him with bewildered expressions.

"I didn't realize it before, but think back to what he did in the vision. He killed many people in Ionia, fought with Volibear and Sejuani, killed Demacians, and killed a woman in Piltover. But he didn't _just_ kill people."

Quinn's eyes lit up. "He stole a scroll."

"Exactly. The weird thing is, I have a pretty good memory, especially of our scrolls. The one he stole, despite those who died in the vision having returned with the date reset, is still missing."

"It is?" Volibear asked. "How?"

"I don't know, but I did say I had a good memory. That scroll was a spell scroll designed to return foreign souls back into their normal bodies."

"That doesn't make sense. Why would he take it?" Quinn asked, looking puzzled.

"Because," Karma spoke up. "The Cardinal Spirits actually fragment one's soul into five, one for each element."

"But that means…." Volibear trailed off.

"Exactly." Kennen said. "If we use that spell, he'll split in five and we might be able to beat him."

* * *

"What do you mean you can't remember the last sigil?!" Volibear roared.

"Shh!" Karma hushed him. "We're in a library. Don't anger the curator."

"Look, I listed the first seven hundred and eighty-one. How is the fact that I can't remember the last one trumping my achievement?" Kennen narrowed his eyes.

"I just don't see how you can get that many and literally forget the last _one!_ " Volibear shouted.

"Volibear. Quiet." Karma reprimanded again.

"Quiet?! He's missing the only way we can win!" Volibear opened his mouth to shout again, but only a whisper of his voice came out. He fell short with a confused expression.

"I'd prefer it if you were quieter." a deep voice spoke from behind Volibear. The six Champions looked to the voice, seeing Nasus with an open book in his hand and his staff in the other.

Volibear rolled his eyes. "Fine." His voice sounded normal again.

As Nasus turned around and left, Volibear glared at Kennen. "Seriously, it's like you purposefully forgot."

Everybody suddenly looked toward each other with wide eyes.

Clapping. It was familiar. They all looked towards a nearby bookshelf to see Sære walk from behind it.

"Man, you guys are _dense!_ " he laughed. "How can it be that you figure out the time manipulation but not the whole trick? Fine, I like a challenge, but this is ridiculous. I'll help you when there's no way you'll get further, but keep this in mind. You'll be given a strike each time I help. Each strike after the first will take a month off the destination date. In other words, after this, if I help again, make it November 30th." Sære spoke with deadly seriousness. "But," he said, returning to his bubbly self. "For now, I'll help. Volibear."

Volibear growled.

"Nasus just cast a spell on you. Make that the first. Keep the next eight in mind. And with that, I bid you good day." Sære giggled before vanishing into what seemed like thin air.

Volibear growled again. "He's just toying with us again and again. We're playthings, and I _hate_ being a plaything." He tore his claws into the table before shoving it aside and stomping off.

"We should probably follow him." Kennen said. The others nodded and they all rushed after him.

Volibear was angry. A dark expression covered his face and everyone walking through the Institute opened a hole in front of him. He didn't even seem to notice the world around him. He continued forward, mindlessly pushing open the front doors and walking toward a nearby grove. The other five were nearing him when they saw him freeze in place. His hindpaw was inches away from crushing a bird egg. Looking up, Caitlyn realized it had fallen out of a nest.

"Well, friend, you should look where you're stomping! The birds don't like you much." a cheerful voice spoke. As the others got closer, they saw Ivern had frozen Volibear in place.

"That's the second spell." Kennen said.

Karma walked off toward Volibear and Ivern to diffuse the situation. Kennen looked to the other two girls. "What do you think the pattern is? Nasus cast an unknown spell, Ivern probably used nature magic to root Volibear, but I don't see how the spells add up."

"Calm down, Kennen." Quinn urged. "We still have seven more after this. Expecting to figure out the game a fraction of the way in is more than a little overzealous."

Kennen sighed, but he knew she was right.

Volibear and Karma were on their way back when they heard a sharp "Look out!"

Volibear turned just in time to see Gnar hop over him and Heimerdinger throw a storm grenade where Gnar last landed: Volibear's head.

Taric, probably the one to shout the warning, ran up to them. "Apologies, fellow Champions. Our Revered Inventor appears to be on the hunt for the Missing Link after he stole Heimerdinger's good wrench. I've been attempting to curb the damage they leave in their wake."

Volibear tried to respond, but it just came out a slurred and garbled mess. "Oh, right." Taric waved his hand in front of Volibear's snout, a blue shimmer running through the Ursine's fur. "I'll see you around!" Taric called over his shoulder, already trying to keep up with the rampant Yordles.

Volibear huffed, seemingly back to his old grumpy self. "I need to go punch someone. Where's Malphite? He always spars with me."

Volibear once again stalked off, looking for Malphite. Kennen sighed in exasperation and the five gave chase once more.

When they finally found Volibear, he had already clearly been sparring with Malphite for a while. Seeing no way of stopping it without serious repercussions, they merely sat down and observed. Malphite would throw a Seismic Shard, Volibear would grab it and throw it back, Malphite would mitigate the damage with his Granite Shield, and Volibear would charge, only to trade some blows with the Shard of the Monolith and be knocked back to the other side of the arena. They went through this process a long while before Volibear buckled, panting.

"Thank you, friend." the Ursine said. Malphite helped him up and they patted each other's backs before Volibear walked towards the others. "I feel much better now."

"Thank the stars, 'cause your feelings are much more important than wasting time while Sære prepares to, oh, I dunno, _murder everyone!_ " Quinn said, tense with annoyance.

Volibear blinked. "That's it. Aurelion Sol is exceedingly powerful. There's no way he'd be in the shared vision unless he remembered something, too!" Volibear smiled, although it looked a lot more like a menacing snarl to the others.

He ran off, looking for the Star Forger. "You'd think he'd be less reckless." Quinn sighed.

Caitlyn, who had stayed silent much of the day, finally spoke up. "I don't know, he has a point." Kennen merely nodded in agreement.

Upon finally catching Volibear, they found him arguing with the large cosmic dragon. A bad move for anyone with some semblance of sanity.

"What do you mean you don't remember anything? You may be literally older than the stars, but fear is a pungent scent and I can smell it from you a mile away. What are you afraid of him for? You literally forge _stars_ in your paw!" Volibear shouted.

Aurelion Sol, who would normally just vaporize anyone who dared to even look at him the wrong way, merely threw Volibear with a spell force, knocking him across the Institute lobby. Rakan, who was standing nearby, tentatively sent a heal before dashing back to Xayah, who was watching the proceedings with amusement clearly written on her face.

"I'm not afraid at all. I just know when to gracefully _bow out._ " With that, the Star Forger opened a portal and flew through it.

"What number are we at?" Caitlyn asked.

"Eight total." Quinn responded.

Kennen thought back to his list. "We had Nasus, Ivern, Gnar, Heimerdinger, Taric, Malphite, Aurelion Sol, and now Rakan."

"Wait a second…." Caitlyn trailed. "Their names."

The group looked toward each other sharply.

"Hey!" Volibear shouted.

"Oh, sorry Volibear. Didn't see you there."

It was Ezreal.

"Their names spell nightmare." Caitlyn practically whispered.

 **So, I realize it's been, oh, literally two weeks less than a year, but I bring good news and bad news. Bad news is I literally forgot I had this story until a few days ago when I got an email for a review and I was like "What is someone reviewing? I have a story? Oh yeah... Well crap." and here I am. Good news is that the reason I forgot the story existed was because I was playing as a concertmaster in a school orchestra as well as the concertmaster's loyal page-flipper (second chair instrumentalists know this feel) for another orchestra that was playing crap like Smetana's "The Moldau," Sibelius's "Finlandia" (which was actually hella fun, but them brass players went to freaking _town_ ), and Gustav Holst's "The Planets." I mean, sure, there's plenty harder pieces than those, but I'm not that great; those were hard for me. XD Right, I was doing good news. I was in two orchestras, taking multiple AP classes, going to college as well as high school, and trying to get my applications, scholarships, etc. for university. I'm graduating with my associate's degree at the same time as my high school diploma, so university will be right after that. Anywho, since I know what made me forget this existed, I can (sort of) remedy that, sort of because it already happened. I left one of them due to financial reasons and the other because I felt it wasn't helping me along anymore in terms of progressing my violin skills, so I just do private lessons now, which is helping a lot, but is also a lot less time consuming. On top of that, while I'm still in college and high school, my high school classes are obscenely easy this year, so I basically only have college and private lessons, which means more time to write! :D I know that probably doesn't help, nor does it really push a vote of confidence in my uploading abilities, but I dunno, I'll do my best. Also, I know this chapter's really short, but I REALLY liked ending it where I did and I also wanted to let whoever happens to read this know that I'm sorry (oh, and not dead). Anywho, hope you liked the chapter. I'll try to get the next one out as soon as I can (and not forget about this story again; I swear it wasn't intentional ;w;).**


	4. Chapter Four

"What number are we at?" Caitlyn asked.

"Eight total." Quinn responded.

Kennen thought back to his list. "We had Nasus, Ivern, Gnar, Heimerdinger, Taric, Malphite, Aurelion Sol, and now Rakan."

"Wait a second…." Caitlyn trailed. "Their names."

The group looked toward each other sharply.

"Hey!" Volibear shouted.

"Oh, sorry Volibear. Didn't see you there."

It was Ezreal.

"Their names spell nightmare." Caitlyn practically whispered.

" _What?!_ " Volibear looked incredulous. "We're losing our memories, we're seeing things, everything's gone to hell, and you're telling me it's all a nightmare?! So we still haven't woken up!?" Volibear was fuming.

"Or have you?"

Sære.

"What do you want?" Karma asked, growing tired of the game.

Quinn looked around. "Uh, guys? Everybody's frozen in place. I think he stopped time again." Valor shuffled on her shoulder tensely.

"Y'know, sometimes the scariest nightmare is the one you never wake up from." Sære continued. "However, I find that the scariest nightmare isn't a nightmare at all, but reality twisted so cruelly that it _seems_ like a nightmare. Like how I can just kill everyone here in an instant. But I won't, because that would make the game too easy. Instead, I'll give you all one last chance. Fight me now, or everyone here dies."

Caitlyn's face looked horrified. She looked around the room. "Don't bother, Caitlyn. I've already counted. There are 16 civilians and three Champions. That's nineteen deaths none of you can stop and will probably all feel guilty for. Or… you can fight me." He glared.

Volibear growled before it turned to a roar and he charged. "Volibear, no!" Quinn shouted. Sære grabbed Volibear by a paw, spun him around, and flung him back into the wall behind them, cracking it.

Kennen suddenly shouted something that seemed all too much like gibberish. Quinn and Karma looked at him oddly, but Caitlyn knew exactly what had happened. Sære wasn't actually expecting anyone to fight him. He lost his focus, if only for a split second, and Kennen took advantage of that. It was the spell.

"No!" Sære shouted, but it was too late. His voice distorted, his body faded in and out of vision, and he split into five different copies of himself, but their entire bodies were made out of each of his Cardinal elements.

"I…. Will make your lives…. _A_ _living hell!_ Not even the Lotus Blossoms will be able to save you!" The Sære made of lightning growled menacingly, a sound oddly akin to thunder and, a split second later, all five of them were gone.

Aside from Volibear, the Champions breathed a sigh of relief. The Thunder's Roar was infuriated. He smashed an oversized paw into a nearby wall, cracking it and lacing arcs of lightning outward.

"Volibear! Calm down!" Caitlyn shouted.

"Are you DENSE?! HE GOT AWAY!" Volibear roared at a near deafening volume.

"Maybe so…." Caitlyn paused, thinking. "But at least everyone's still alive."

"The Soul Marks are gone, too." Karma murmured.

"Wait, seriously? How?"

"I assume, now that he's split, he doesn't possess the focused power to keep the spell going."

As soon as the thought sunk in, time around them set back in. The commotion kept going and, aside from the randomly shattered wall, none of the bystanders seemed to notice any discrepancies in the world around them. "We can't tell anyone." Kennen said. "We have to do this ourselves."

Karma and Caitlyn nodded. Quinn looked up from her thoughts with a start, "What did he mean by lotus blossoms?"

Kennen looked quizzical for a second before it seemed to click. "I… I don't know." They all looked about them, but no answers were present among them.

"Back to the library I suppose." Quinn sighed. Volibear responded with muttering his qualms with the situation under his breath.

* * *

"So there's literally nothing on lotus blossoms and this mess?" Volibear groaned.

"It's not my fault Nasus locked up the books on the Cardinal Spirits in the forbidden section." Kennen griped.

"Why are you looking into the Cardinal Spirits?" Nasus' voice, deep and resonating, asked suddenly, causing the Champions to turn to him with a start.

"We were just curious, that's all." Quinn smiled innocently.

"I have seen centuries rise and fall and I've lost count how old I, myself, am at this point, Quinn. Do not bore me with attempts at hiding your true intentions." Nasus said, his left ear flicking in irritation.

"Oh. My. Stars. That was the cutest thing ever. Hey, hey! You six! Irritate him again! Maybe his ear'll flick again. I wanna see that!" an excited and deep voice came from literally nowhere.

The Champions looked about them in all directions, but saw nobody. "Are you all okay?" Nasus asked, a hint of concern in his eyes.

"Who said that?" Volibear asked.

Nasus blinked. "I did?"

"Not you, Curator. The annoying one." Volibear muttered. "Show yourself!"

Nasus shook his head in exasperation. "I'm going to have to ask you to leave, please. I'd prefer my other library-goers not be disturbed."

With a huff, the six left. "What a jerk. But he's so adorable, though! You just can't hate him for too long!" It was the voice again.

"Who's there?!" Volibear practically hissed.

"Seveset. Shut up. They can't see you." a second voice came about this time, this one feminine and laced with annoyance.

"Oh, come off it, Kaaya. He's just having fun." a third voice, deeper than the first, but stronger and heartier.

"Whatever, Irra."

Kennen blinked. "What is happening?"

Space a bit in front of the group seemed to distort, causing the six to blink involuntarily. When their eyes readjusted, there seemed to be three Yordles standing there.

"More Yordles. Are you three gonna kill us, too?" Quinn asked, Valor ruffling his feathers defensively.

"No, of course not! That'd be silly!" the first voice belonged to a small male Yordle with soft pink fur and bright orange eyes. He had really large ears, even by Yordle standards, and seemed to be bubbly and friendly with anyone. He wore simple clothing and had piercings at the end of his ears. "Anywho, my name's Seveset!" He giggled, waving.

"I'm Kaaya." the second voice belonged to a female Yordle with deep blue fur and heterochromatic eyes. Her left eye was like an emerald and her right eye was like tigerseye. She wore similarly simple clothing and had fairly normal sized ears.

"Irra." The last one said, nodding shortly. He had solid black fur, but his hands had white fur and the tips of his ears were grey. He also had fairly normal sized ears, and his eyes were a sea blue.

"How did you do that space thing? And why couldn't Nasus hear you?" Quinn questioned them, eyes bewildered.

"And what's wrong with your souls?" Karma asked, her eyes narrow and critical.

"Ah, you can see soul patterns! Interesting!" Seveset said, still bubbly. "We're what's called Cardinal Seers. Once the Cardinal Master is split, it's our job to assist those who split them."

"And why's that?" Caitlyn prodded.

"Because the Cardinal Spirits have been corrupted. You may think the Cardinal Master is in control of their own powers, but that's not quite true. They're just a medium for the Cardinal Spirits to assist in this world. See, when strife is about to strike Runeterra, the Aspect of Twilight- the one you call Zoe- is supposed to come bearing a message of imminent horrors. However, if those horrors are too much for your world to deal with, the Cardinal Spirits give their powers to a child of magic in advance so they can assist. Unfortunately, this time it's bad. Those horrors? They corrupted the Cardinal Spirits. Now the medium, your Cardinal Master, is a medium for _evil_ spirits. Fun, right?" Seveset's eyes glittered with excitement.

"So you three are here to help us… help you?"

"Precisely." Kaaya said, pointing to the Champions. "You assist us, and we'll assist your world."

"So who, exactly, corrupted the Cardinal Spirits?" Kennen asked.

"That would be the Ruby Queen. She's… not your friend." Seveset giggled.

"Clearly." Volibear muttered, rolling his eyes.

"So our first job is to help you. Come with us." Kaaya said simply.

The Champions blinked and the world around them warped, distorting into a different image until they appeared to be in a small cave. Looking outside, they saw they were in a cliffside cave who-knows-how-far above the ground. There was a blizzard outside, and the Champions acutely felt the sudden shift in temperature.

"Alright. Time for upgrades!" Seveset shouted, clapping happily.

"Caitlyn. For you, we've procured The Deadshot." Irra said, pointing to a sniper hanging on the cave wall nearby. "That rifle can shoot phasing bullets that will phase in and out at your command. It's easier to show."

Irra picked up the rifle, pointing it at Caitlyn. "Just trust me here and don't move."

Caitlyn nodded, but there was slight fear in her eyes.

Irra pulled the trigger and a bullet fired. However, right before it hit Caitlyn, it vanished, only to reappear on the other side of her and leave a bullet hole in the cave wall.

"You'll need to practice a lot first, but that's it. You just will it to phase in or out and it will do so."

"Quinn and Valor." Kaaya spoke, beckoning them over. "The Destitute." Kaaya picked up a small box, handing it to Quinn. "This box can, at the command of its owner, switch between a crossbow and a crossgun. To mark yourself as its owner, simply put a drop of your blood on it and say 'I will be the one who brings destitution to all.' and, to activate it once you own it, simply tell it what to do. Crossgun, crossbow, or hide."

"Karma." Seveset looked her straight in the eye. He began speaking a foreign language much like the one Kennen spoke in earlier to split Sære in five.

Shortly after he finished, Karma's eyes and leg tattoo began to glow. When they stopped, she slumped over, panting. "That's new."

"Volibear." Kaaya poked him, as he wasn't looking away from Karma. Kaaya began speaking in an entirely different language, neither the foreign one or Runeterran. Volibear responded in the language and, shortly after, he walked to the side of the room and began a practice that looked an awful lot like meditation.

"Kennen." Irra, Kaaya, and Seveset spoke at once. Kennen blinked, staring at them oddly.

"Yes?"

Kaaya, Seveset, and Irra spoke in unison, their eyes glowing. "Despite what the Cardinal Master thinks, _you_ are actually the one prophesied to stop him. We have kept your true powers dormant for a long time with much effort to make certain he did not find you. Now, we must unleash it. He will feel it and he will know where you are. Do not let him win. It is imperative that the Cardinal Master and the Cardinal Spirits be uncorrupted so Runeterra may live through the horror and strife already on its way. The Aspect of Twilight nor even the Star Forger may protect this world unless the Cardinal Spirits awaken from their nightmare."

Finally, they put their hands toward Kennen and, before Kennen could process what was happening, everything went black.

 **New people! Le gasp!**


End file.
